My latest at the National Catholic Register touches on some interesting bits of French culture where marriage is concerned. I didn’t have room in a short essay to create an annotated bibliography, and anyway I stumbled on more interesting stuff than I’ll ever write about. Here’s a list of assorted links of potential interest to select readers, with a few comments at the bottom related to my essay topic.
In talking about cultural contrasts, here’s an article on France’s military-run brothel system, dating from World War I. Here’s a short history of the United States’ approach to the problem of venereal diseases during the same period. The differences are striking.
This Google preview of Fathers, Families, and the State in France, 1914-1945 has some history of the role of paternity during that time period.
All kinds of interesting parental-rights cases from the European Court of Human Rights are summarized here (in English).
On the question of legitmacy: Children Born Outside Marriage in France and their Parents. Recognitions and Legitimations since 1965. Text is in English, and loaded with statistics concerning changes in practice over time.
Here’s a research paper exploring the range of issues in how biological versus social paternity is handled across Europe. It is useful as an introduction to the kinds of issues that are in play, and how different countries have dealt with them.
Some Wikimedia articles that highlight the way French law handles questions of maternity and paternity:
- Paternity testing: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DNA_paternity_testing#France
- Anonymous birth: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anonymous_birth
A more academic discussion of the question of genetic testing legislation in Europe is here. The European Journal of Human Genetics discusses the legal situation in Western Europe here.
Wikimedia’s English-language summary of the history of posthumous marriage is here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posthumous_marriage. Note there is a slight error, it is Article 171 that gives us the pertinent law. The related topic of proxy-marriage is discussed here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proxy_marriage.
There’s a bit on the case law concerning posthumous marriage in Europe if you scroll down to paragragh 247 of Le Couple et la Convention Européenne des Droits de l’Homme . Google translate struggles a bit on this one. The French Code Civil (in French) is here.
On the topic of posthumous marriage, the only Church document, at all, which I could find was this: http://www.radiovaticana.va/Afr_bulletin/14_05_14.html. The relevant part is here, boldface mine:
D. AUX CHEFS DE FAMILLE
24 – Chers chefs de famille, votre place n’est plus à démontrer, et votre responsabilité est capitale. L’impact de votre action peut être positif ou négatif, selon que vous agissez conformément ou non à la volonté de Dieu. Il vous donne de prendre soin des personnes qu’il vous confie. Votre mission est à la fois honorable et complexe. C’est sur vous que repose la cohésion de la famille, en matière de dot, de gestion d’héritage et de conflits, de traitement des veuves, des veufs et des orphelins. Dans cet ordre d’idées, à la lumière de la tradition et de l’Evangile, nous dénonçons la pratique illégale qui consiste à demander une dot trop élevée. Respectez ce que prévoit le code de la famille (art. 140). Nous condamnons la pratique du mariage posthume (versement de la dot lors du décès de la conjointe). Appliquez-vous avec courage, avec toute votre force, à accomplir dignement votre mission de chef de famille.Nous vous assurons, de notre soutien, de notre proximité, de notre prière et de notre bénédiction.
The context is not (at all whatsoever) the French civil law on posthumous marriage. Rather, the bishops are condemning the practice of asking too high of a dowry, and therefore also the practice of “posthumous marriage” as a vehicle for receiving the payment of the dowry when the bride has died.
By way of comparison on the topic of the French civil code’s practice of posthumous marriage, here’s the Code of Canon Law on the topic of “radical sanation,” which is something completely different. It’s of interest because it shares the concept of “going back in time and fixing things” where marriage is concerned. And that’s it — no other connection between the two.
I searched on “French Family” and the results came up Dutch. Thanks Wikimedia!